


Innocent Always 2.0

by tricksterity



Category: Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: M/M, Sirius Gets a Trial bc Dumbledore isnt an Asshole, Sirius Lives
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-17
Updated: 2014-09-17
Packaged: 2018-02-17 17:54:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2318168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tricksterity/pseuds/tricksterity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An AU where Sirius doesn't die in OotP and Dumbledore isn't an asshole and gets him a trial. Also he's hella gay with Remus but that's not really explicit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Innocent Always 2.0

Remus’ footsteps would have been loud and repetitive on the hardwood floor had it not been carpeted years earlier simply for that reason. He was pacing back and forth, feet wearing down the maroon carpet, dampening his steps to slight, almost inaudible muffles. The only other sound in the marble hallway was Hermione muttering under her breath, reassuring those around her of all the research she had done and how their irrefutable evidence would _have_ to set Sirius free.

“I mean, especially considering how Sirius didn’t even get a trial the first time, that’ll definitely add to our defence, oh how I _wish_ we were allowed in instead of being stuck out here,” she muttered to Harry, obviously intending for her words to be comforting, but the young boy was staring blankly at the carpet fibres, lost in his own world. Although, Remus thought, that could be a side effect of being literally possessed by Lord Voldemort not a week previous.

Remus did agree with the young girl though, and her words were the exact reassurances he himself had flitting throughout his mind. It was he who had convinced Dumbledore to give Sirius a trial after the Minister for Magic had seen Voldemort during the battle. Cornelius Fudge had been so adamant that Voldemort hadn’t returned that now that there was no doubt he was back, the _Prophet_ had been posting daily articles about how he was clearly not fit for office. Fudge needed to do something to make sure that his position as Minister was not in any way threatened.

The return of Voldemort was the perfect opportunity to convince Fudge that giving Sirius a trial was crucial. Remus had spent weeks gathering information, sources and research to put together a concrete foundation of a defence that would at least give Sirius a chance. It was Arthur Weasley who reminded them all that un-tampered memories could be used as a solid defence in court, as long as there were at least three memories that matched up perfectly. One memory was a flimsy defence at best, but the identical memories of Remus plus Harry, Ron and Hermione of that night in the Shrieking Shack when Peter Pettigrew was revealed was unshakable proof of Sirius’ innocence.

Peter Pettigrew’s very existence, plus his admission that night that it had been he who was secret keeper for the Potters and had betrayed them to Voldemort and killed those twelve Muggles was as good as a live confession from him. However, Wormtail had scarpered after the resurrection of Voldemort and hadn’t been seen since.

Remus would’ve liked to see him chained to a chair, surrounded by the Wizengamot, shaking like a leaf and sweating through his clothes as he confessed to his crimes under the influence of Veritaserum. Unfortunately, even if Peter could be found, Remus wasn’t allowed in the courtroom anyway. The only person who had been allowed to stand at Sirius’ side as his defence was Dumbledore, even though four of them had provided the memory evidence. Remus wished he knew what was happening, but the heavy lacquered doors had a charm on them that made it impossible to hear any noise, even if a banshee screeched right on the other side. Remus wanted more than anything to stand resolutely by Sirius’ side and stare down anyone who dared look at the convict wrong, to argue for his freedom.

Remus had tried to do the same sixteen years ago when Sirius had first been convicted without a trial, but at the time even he still doubted Sirius’ innocence, and had then convinced himself in the years following that the man he loved had betrayed his best friends, although there had always been something in the back of his mind that whispered that Sirius would rather have died than betray James and Lily to Voldemort.

Now Remus’ research had paid off, he had a solid case to give to Dumbledore that convinced the man to go to the Minister and request a trial for Sirius Black. He didn’t imagine however that he’d be stuck outside in a dark hallway with the rest of the Order of the Phoenix, getting more anxious as the hours ticked by. Molly Weasley had gone to get snacks for everyone earlier and had emerged distinctly ruffled, admitting that somehow Rita Skeeter had gotten hold of information regarding the supposedly top secret trial, and now nearly every single reporter in the country was waiting outside to ambush them post trial.

Crisp packets and empty pumpkin pasty wrappers littered the seats, the only rubbish bins up with the masses, and everyone seemed to be both tense and lethargic at the same time. The tension hung in the air, palpable like a strange humidity, pressing down on everyone, making the air thick and difficult to breathe. Remus’ palms were pressed together, fingertips touching his mouth almost like a prayer, though Remus was not a religious man. Despite this, he found himself praying to any deity that was listening that Sirius could be given the justice he so deserved.

There was silence, anxiety, paranoia, and then there was the sound of an opening door and a flood of noise from the courtroom as the one hundred members of the wizard council chattered among themselves. Dumbledore held the huge oak doors open, face impassive as Sirius walked out of the courtroom, head held down, dark hair forming curtains around his face. It was impossible to tell what his reaction was, but given that his wrists weren’t shackled, that had to be a good thing.

Remus felt as though the air in his lungs had been replaced with water and he knew that his hands were shaking. Sirius’ head slowly raised, his black hair falling aside to reveal a blinding grin that took at least ten years off his aged face.

“Acquitted of all charges,” he announced brightly, and all Remus could do was clutch the man to his chest and exhale sixteen years of doubt, guilt and now – relief. 


End file.
